INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 7th JOINT - IOA

The most elementary factor to be considered is thereby the general
and sport related national background of values, traditions and
history (Bloomfield 2003, Digel 2001a, Heinemann 2003, Houlihan
1997). Influencing the attitude towards sport in general and elite sport
specifically, it also explains the interests for specific disciplines in a
respective society or in how far professional sport careers are socially
excepted (Braun 2000a, 2000b) – and through this the number of
athletes willing to choose the career of an elite athlete.
In combination with the particular political, social and economic
status quo at a given time, this general background defines for
example the amount of governmental funding available, and the actual
sums provided for the support of the sport system.
Although varying in form and intensity, most of today’s sport
policy systems have a direct link with the respective national
government (Houlihan 1997) and with the related governmental
bodies. Besides providing financial and management support, bodies
such as the education system and the military are playing an additional
important role in the lifestyle support services provided for elite
athletes (e.g. Müller 2002, Nehren 2002).
Furthermore the international economy and the respective state it
is in, influences the situation and development of the national sport
systems significantly, as companies from nearly all branches are
playing important roles as sponsors, donators, promoters, or as
business partners for today’s elite sport.
Finally, showing an intermediate character as both stakeholders
and executive organs of a policy system, the national and international
federations of the different sporting disciplines, representing the
international clubs with their individual members, should be
considered in a stakeholder analysis of sport policy systems as
separate players (Detoille & Touche 2003 b) due to their political (e.g.
IOC), organisational (e.g. DSB – German Sport Federation) and
financial (e.g. FIFA) weight.
This complex background situation in which sport policy systems
in general and an elite sport system in specific are embedded can be
assumed to be one of the main explanations for the variety of the
existing organisational designs (Houlihan 1997). In a related sense
different levels of professionalism and commercialisation in such
systems have also developed.
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